Newcastle real estate prices hit a new high in October, surpassing Melbourne's for the first time in 15 years.
CoreLogic data shows Newcastle and Lake Macquarie's median dwelling price, combining houses and units, rose another 1.9 per cent to hit $787,000 and overtake Melbourne's $780,000.
Melbourne's median house price ($973,000) remains much higher, but its higher proportion of units, which have a median price of $622,000, bring it below Newcastle overall.
Melbourne has been comparatively more expensive since August 2006, when Newcastle's median dwelling price hit $326,000.
The median price of a detached house in Newcastle jumped another two per cent last month from $802,000 to $818,000.
They have risen 31.3 per cent in the past year, and $233,000 since October 2020.
Median unit prices have grown by 1.2 per cent last month and 17.1 per cent this year to $624,000.
RELATED: Newcastle property passes $800,000
Why Sydney investors are buying up in the West End
$700,000 the 'new normal' for first home buyers in Newcastle
Walkom Real Estate's Scott Walkom said he believed unit prices in Melbourne, which have experienced an annual growth of 9.2 per cent, would bounce back.
"I think their pricing has probably not gone up as much as us because they had a lot of vacancies from the foreign students, no tourism and the lockdown," Mr Walkom said.
"Newcastle has been a desirable place to move to in lockdown so we've benefited from that ... we're having a little renaissance at the moment.
"I think you'll see Sydney and Melbourne recover whereas we'll probably keep going on well, but won't get a big bounce."
The Hunter region, excluding Newcastle, experienced some of the nation's biggest growth in October.
Median house and unit prices jumped a huge 3.3 per cent to reach $638,000 and $441,000 respectively.
House prices have added $197,000 since October 2020.
Across the nation, growth trends eased to 1.5 per cent in October. Perth recorded its first drop in value since June last year.
CoreLogic research director Tim Lawless said worsening housing affordability and increased supply levels were contributing to market deceleration.
"Housing prices continue to outpace wages by a ratio of about 12 to one," he said.
"This is one of the reasons why first home buyers are becoming a progressively smaller component of housing demand.
"New listings have surged by 47 per cent since the recent low in September and housing focused stimulus such as HomeBuilder and stamp duty concessions have now expired.
"Combining these factors with the subtle tightening of credit assessments set for November 1, and it's highly likely the housing market will continue to gradually lose momentum."
